Overview
Heart failure (HF) is the most costly chronic disease in developed and developing countries. More than 26 million people worldwide are suffering from HF, placing great stresses on patients, caregivers and health care systems. The number of patients will be increasing in the next decades due to ageing populations, therefore improved diagnosis and therapy of HF are important goals of major healthcare organizations. In keeping with its mission to identify areas of unmet medical needs and develop innovative health care solutions, Roche Diagnostics is partnering with the University of Ottawa Heart Institute (UOHI) to develop a better way to identify and classify HF, based on testing novel biomarkers for the disease. To date, with previous Genome Canada funding, UHOI, University of Toronto and Roche Diagnostics have identified eight novel biomarker candidates for HF characterization and have filed for global patents for these candidates. Now, the partners will conduct further clinical evaluation of the biomarkers, with the intent of developing a HF biomarker panel and an accompanying clinical development program to translate the findings from basic research to clinical benefit of patients. Partnering with Roche has the strategic advantage that their diagnostic test might run on more than 40,000 Roche Diagnostic instruments worldwide. The Panel aims to assist physicians in earlier identification and classification of HF and support personalized HF treatment that might result in more effective therapies and better outcomes for HF patients. These are important aspects in view of patient burden and costs associated with HF, with particular focus on minimizing length of hospitalization, re-admissions, unnecessary treatments and adverse events. The project aims at promoting Canadian leadership in medical innovation and attracts additional partnerships and investments from major leaders in the global biotech industry.